Regulation 2017/2393 - Amendment of Regulations (EU) No 1305/2013 on support for rural development by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD), (EU) No 1306/2013 on the financing, management and monitoring of the common agricultural policy, (EU) No 1307/2013 establishing rules for direct payments to farmers under support schemes within the framework of the common agricultural policy, (EU) No 1308/2013 establishing a common organisation of the markets in agricultural products and (EU) No 652/2014 laying down provisions for the management of expenditure relating to the food chain, animal health and animal welfare, and relating to plant health and plant reproductive material - Main contents

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 350/15

In order to ensure legal certainty and harmonised and non-discriminatory implementation of support to young farmers, it is necessary to provide that in the context of rural development the ‘date of setting up’, referred to in Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (5) and in other relevant rules, means the date when the applicant performs or completes an action related to the setting up for the first time and that the application for support is to be submitted at the latest 24 months after that date. Moreover, experience from the negotiations of the programmes has shown that the rules for the joint setting up of young farmers and the thresholds for access to support required under Article 19(4) of Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013 should be clarified, and that the provisions on the duration of the business plan should be streamlined.

In order to facilitate implementation of advisory and training services by Member States' Managing Authorities, the status of beneficiary under that measure should be extended to those authorities, while at the same time ensuring that the provider of the service is chosen by a body functionally independent from those authorities and that checks are carried out at the level of the provider of advice or training.

With a view to incentivising participation in quality schemes, farmers or groups of farmers taking part in such schemes in the five years preceding the application for support should be eligible for a maximum duration of five years, while duly taking into account the time of the initial participation in the scheme.

In order to be sufficiently attractive to the private sector, it is essential that financial instruments are designed and implemented in a flexible and transparent manner. However, experience has shown that certain measure-specific eligibility rules limit the uptake of financial instruments in the rural development programmes, as well as the flexible use of financial instruments by fund managers. Therefore, it is appropriate to provide that certain measure-specific eligibility rules do not apply to financial instruments. For the same reason, it is also appropriate to provide that start-up aid to young farmers under Article 19 of Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013 may also be provided in the form of financial instruments. In view of those changes, it should be...